R&R(Romantic & Relaxed) Phuket - 14/05/2010 To 16/05/2010 (Part II)

Hotel breakfast; mediocre in my opinion

Our tutuk driver, Mr Man, whom we engaged whenever

we go to Patong Beach because Cape Sienna is located

highup on Kamala Beach

Phuket is hot, hot, hot! Bought a big hat from this lady

Unable to escape the clutches of Junky "M"

Hubs enjoyed 2 hours of body massage here while

I had an hour of massage and another hour of cuticle pampering

Idyllic soak at both Sienna Rocks and the hotel pool

after our massage

The overhyped and definitely over rated(food wise) Baan Rim Pa Restaurant

You can't miss the restaurant with its ice carving and huge golden signboard at the entrance

Beautiful staff and numerous accolades adorned its wall

The patio

Inside the restaurant; very romantic ambience and good view

Come here only if the ambience is of primary concern

e.g. a proposal and you have extra cash to spare for it is not cheap

The restaurant was so dimly lit that the staff had to give

each diner a table lamp so that we can read the menu clearly

For the record, we were dressed too casually(especially hubs) for at our next table,

a caucasian gentleman wore a tuxedo(yes!) and his partner a cocktail dress

Food which looked better than they tasted

After our dinner, we went to the Phuket Town Night Market

which is about 20 minutes drive from Patong Beach

and is opened only on weekends

Food and shopping aplenty in the night market to keep one busyYou wouldn't believe it but yes, we went back to Patong Beach

after the night marketing for a last round of seafood feast

before we leave Phuket! A dog's life?! A super fortunate canine
Back at the resort :)
Enroute to the airport, the taxi driver brought us to a popular

local stall which sells Mango Glutinous Rice. Yummy!!

Finally, my first and last drink in Phuket - Ice Buay!!

We had a great time in Phuket and indeed, it was relaxing and pretty stress-free the few days we were away from K but we missed her badly. Surprisingly, it was me who seemed to miss K more. Machismo act up for hubs? Hehe.....

Still, I hope to take a similar vacation soon. After this short getaway, I am now a firm believer that "couple only-time" is very, very important to keep a relationship healthy and alive (^_^)

R&R(Romantic & Relaxed) Phuket - 14/05/2010 To 16/05/2010 (Part I)

- Patiently waiting for our flight which got delayed

- We had a simple but costly breakfast inside the terminal

- Tiger Airways' measly compensation of Fried Bee Hoon Set for its flight delay

- A vintage Mercedes parked at Phuket's airport

- My favourite drink found only at this store and

nowhere else in Phuket - Ice Buay!!

Our lovey dovey resort - Cape Sienna

View of the resort lobby and view from the lobby...simply breathtaking!
- Welcome welcome - chilled tea with hints of cinnamon & cold towel
- Select our favourite aroma for our room from the given 4 fragrances
Our room with a huge balcony and jacuzzi outdoors
View from our balcony
Apart from the usual pool, there is also an infinity pool
Must visit! Sienna Rocks - an extension of Cape Sienna with
superb view of the ocean and a big infinity pool.
Although many ply its entrance daily,
not many knew about its existence which was good for
we had the whole place to ourselves!
Love is in the air @ Sienna Rocks *blush blush*
What's Phuket without cheap and good seafood?
You should try the Phuket way of eating oysters, delish!!
Food, glorious food! So much for only S$70+!!

- Jungceylon shopping mall

- There are 2 big facial salons in the mall which adopt the "open concept",

thus all customers have their facials done in full view.

Somehow, in both salons, there were more male customers than female.

Hubs got vain and did a facial too! I did not want a facial, thus I shopped

in the mall and amongst other things, I bought a bottle of bathing oil from

Boots which was put to good use in our jacuzzi :)

- Outside the mall, there were many street vendors plying their ware

- Some caucasians clad in nothing but their swimming trunks/undies!

Under the recommendation of my colleague who had heaps of praises for Cape Sienna, we decided to go for a short getaway. We wanted to bring Krissa on this trip but as the resort practises an "all adults only" concept and no child under the age of 12 is allowed to stay overnight, we had no choice but to leave Krissa under the care of my sisters; Keng yee-yee and Auntie Anna. This was the first holiday we had without Krissa.

As strange as it may sound, Krissa fell sick (high fever) in the wee hours of the morning on the day we were suppose to go for our getaway! We kept mum about our going away as we did not wish to upset her. I have heard from friends that it's a kid thing; premonition or intuition whichever term you want to coin it i.e. even if the adults do not tell, the child somehow knows and triggers a reaction. As in K's case, she fell sick! We were suppose to leave for the airport at 6a.m. but we were at KK Chidren Hospital at 4+a.m.! I had thought that hubs would call off the trip but he did not. All of us went home to catch some rest and then ferried K to my sisters as per scheduled.

This trip certainly did not kick off to a good start because after K's episode, we were told that our flight was delayed and instead of departuring at 8+a.m., we were to depart at 11.20a.m. instead! Tough luck! What else could we do but to resign to fate? Moving on, we had breakfast inside the terminal and after brekkie, I can contain my sleepiness no more. I sat myself comfortably on a couch and slept! For the first time, I was like a vagabond sleeping on a couch under public scrutiny! But I can't be bothered, really.

Fortunately, our luck changed for the better when we reached Phuket International Airport. We managed to get a ride to Cape Sienna for a what we deem as justifiable rate after some bargaining. We all know that we have to bargain our way in Thailand, don't we?

Once we stepped in the lobby, I was blown away by the view and had a gut feeling that this trip, in spite of the initial hiccups, will turn out good and memorable afterall :)

Malacca, We'll Be Back! - 01/01/2010 - 03/01/2010

1st stop: The infamous chicken rice ball. We decided on Chung Wah,

though less famous than others, but invites ONLY good reviews

on the internet. True enough, the rice ball/chicken/chilli didn't fail us.

Only chicken rice ball is served here unlike the other operators

who also sell other dishes. Krissa loves the rice ball!

Warning: Don't come on an empty stomache; just look at the

crowd outside the shop! I love this vintage clock with

the shop's name printed on it.

Christ Church with Jonker Street just right behind it
A. Famosa
K was in a very good mood!
Our hotel suite and adjacent view from balcony
K was really tired so she plonked herself comfortably on the bedLove this picture of K looking up!
Another view from the balcony and hotel X'mas decor
Need I say more?!

Daddy & K bonding in the pool

A nearby park which can bring us to Jonker Street via
Christ Church from our hotel in about 10 minutes
Playground facilities in the park: Look at the merry-go-round!
It invoked childhood memories in me! How I wish we can find
more merry-go-round in Singapore!! Look at K and one will know this is
an evergreen hit! On the more modern equipment, K hanged on the bar and
did some swings before sliding down.

My monkey K!!!

K enjoyed herself tremendously in a shopping mall!
More makan and grocery shopping before we make our way home.
I like the idea of the "trolley-basket" in Carrefour!
This had indeed been a gastronomical trip for us! During our short stay,
we had stuffed ourselves with many local delicacies
e.g. nonya food from different well-reviewed restaurants, teochew food,
the infamous Jonker Street chendol with their legendary gula melaka and laksa,
street delights from the weekend night market of Jonker Street etc

We have never taken a road trip....come to think of it, this is my first holiday ever since I was found pregnant with Krissa! Having to have the little one in tow really wasn't easy and having a paranoid Daddy made matter worse. Anyhow, I was glad that we made this trip but it wasn't all that plain sailing.

First, due to the New Year, no room was available at Hotel Equatorial after checks with several online agencies BUT my efforts paid off and we were able to secure a room :) However, nearer the date, I realised we had a BIG problem; the furthest we ever drove to was Johor Bahru, so how are we to drive up to Malacca although everybody said it was easy? Luckily my colleagues, chum Kok Peng who kindly lent us his GPS and the internet were ready to help and provided invaluable information. Hence, we were able to get to our destination safe and fast {^-^} Thanks to everyone! *bow* I would like to give credit to Krissa too for being so cooperative and obedient throughout this trip *muacks..muacks*

I had visited Malacca thrice in my younger days and each time, I would tell myself I would never go back because it was very boring but I ended up there thrice! Malacca now is quite different from the past. Mega malls have sprouted over the years and the little town is now bustling with life, ready to take on the world! Perhaps, being a mother now, I have learnt to relax, slow down and take time to smell the flowers. Or simply...age is catching up.....whatever it is, the pace suits me fine now and I appreciate the town more than ever.